The College's approach to education is based upon a forward-looking
vision anchored in reality. The College has been and continues to be the model for
maritime education and training (MET) in Korea. The programme at the College combines
formal academic studies leading to the B.E. degree, and a course work and practical
experience at sea preparing for the licence as Third Mate or Third Engineer. It also
offers limited students with courses in naval science leading to the eligibility for a
commission as an officer for active duty in the Navy. Few colleges can offer such a full
range of credentials at graduation. The main purpose of the College is to ensure that
students are available to the nation as shipboard officers and as leaders in the maritime
field who will meet the challenges of the present and the future.
With a recent revolution in maritime transport technology, the College
has had to cope with the changes of maritime environment. While the College's curriculum
has changed dramatically since 1990 to reflect the technological advances of world's
merchant marine, the institution has maintained its unswerving commitment to qualify
education and excellence among its students.
In line with the recent revision of STCW Convention, the College has
been trying to bring in innovations by setting up a new educational programme to cope with
the specialisation of merchant marine vessels and technical changes in the shipping
environment.
In this paper, the College's new curriculum has been introduced and
analysed to show what it looks like.
2. ACADEMIC PROGRAMME IN GENERAL
The College of Maritime Sciences of Korea Maritime University1
students with a four-year academic programme leading to a bachelor of engineering degree,
a licence as a merchant marine officer(issued by the Korea Maritime and Port
Administration), and a commission as ensign in the Korean Navy. The curriculum is
demanding, comprehensive and stimulating. It has been carefully designed to ensure that
the student graduate professionally competent, trained for leadership and resposibility,
and be well-trained intellectually.
As a midshipman, students are required to complete a series of required
courses which comprise the common core curriculum. These courses provide a nucleus of
knowledge in key academic subjects. In the second half of the second year, students begin
their major course of study, which will determine the type of merchant marine licence they
receive. Every student in the College of Maritime Sciences should spend one year at sea
regardless of which major they select.
1 It started with two Departments of Nautical Science and
Marine Engineering to meet the needs of the Korean Merchant Marine. However, as Korea has
experienced rapid economic growth, the University gets to demand the deepening of
specialisation in the existing field and the widening of integration between science and
engineering. The University has made a new attempt to adapt itself to such circumstance of
learning from the early 1960s: to promote the specialisation of merchant vessels and the
shipping management and to establish new departments associated with basic sciences and
engineering.
In 1992, such an incessant endeavour under the long-run development
plan resulted in a reorganisation of the University, which consists of three independent
colleges and the faculty of liberal arts and sciences.
